Police arrived at a Pretoria home early Thursday to find a 30-year-old woman fatally shot. They said they found a 9mm pistol at the scene and are carrying out ballistic tests on the weapon.

Police earlier said they laid a charge of murder against a 26-year-old male Thursday but declined to identify the man. Police spokeswoman Lt. Col. Katlego Mogale said police responded to an emergency call from a neighbor who heard shouting at the home.

Local media camped outside the home of Pistorius said police had been at the site and left with someone under arrest. Police said that under South African law they couldn’t release the names of the victim or anyone charged until a court appearance.

Pistorius in police custody

(2:28)

South African runner is being held by police after his girlfriend was shot dead at his house in Pretoria.

Speaking to reporters, another police spokeswoman, Denise Beukes, said there had been previous incidents of a “domestic nature” at the home of Pistorius.

A spokeswoman for model Reeva Steenkamp said Steenkamp died early Thursday. “We are in communication with people on the scene — there is too much speculation at this moment in time,” said Robyn David, of Capacity Relations, on behalf of Steenkamp’s family. Steenkamp was voted into FHM’s 100 sexiest women in the world for the past two years.

“She was the kindest, sweetest human being: an angel on earth who will be sorely missed,” said David.

A spokesman for Pistorius, Peet van Zyl, said he was on his way to Pretoria to speak with the athlete and would make a comment later in the day.

Pistorius, endowed with the Blade Runner nickname for the L-shaped carbon blades he runs on, made history in the London Olympics last year as the first double-amputee to compete on the track at the Olympic Games.

Pistorius was already a star from his exploits in previous Paralympics events. His high-tech blades and drive to compete against able-bodied athletes had for years brought him fame, glory and controversy.

‘The goal is Rio. I’m superexcited for that. I should be at my peak then.’
Oscar Pistorius, speaking after the 2012 Games in London

In 2008, he had been banned from able-bodied competition by the International Association of Athletics Federation but hired lawyers and waged a legal battle that got the ban overturned. He didn’t qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, however.

His participation in able-bodied events put him at the center of a protracted debate over whether his high-tech blades provided some advantage over able-bodied athletes. Some scientists weighed in, arguing that his artificial limbs acted like springs that propelled him in races.

The attention brought widening fame. The spotlight that came with his high-tech running blades and high level of achievement won him endorsements from Nike Inc.
NKE, +0.18%
Oakley
LUX, -0.26%
sunglasses and Thierry Mugler fragrances. Nike featured him in TV ads.

How Pistorius became a track star

(2:44)

A look at the long struggle the South African athlete faced in being able to compete with able-bodied runners at last summer's Olympics.

The stage was set for him to vault to even bigger stardom at the 2012 London Olympics when he was named to the South African Olympic team at the last minute. He was selected to compete on the country’s four-by-400-meter relay team despite not having met qualifying standards; that also made him eligible to compete in the individual 400-meter competition.

In London, past controversies seemed to fade into the background when he became the first double-amputee to compete in the Olympics. In his first event, a men’s 400-meter heat, he advanced to the semifinal round; he failed to reach the finals. He did reach an Olympic final, however, as a member of South Africa’s relay team.

Pistorius was a fan favorite in London, generating excitement in the Olympic Stadium each time he stepped on the track. After each of his competitions, he was in high demand from reporters around the world, overshadowing athletes he had been bested by in competition.

A few weeks after the London Olympics, he competed in the Paralympics, where he again met controversy when he was beaten in the T44 200-meter finals by another double-amputee, Brazil’s Alan Oliveira, who caught Pistorius from behind in the home stretch. Immediately after the race, Pistorius complained bitterly that his rival’s blades were too long, giving him an unfair advantage. He later apologized for the timing of the outburst but didn’t back away from his contention that he was at a technical disadvantage.

After London, Pistorius clearly had his eyes on seeking Olympic glory in 2016.

“The goal is Rio,” site of the 2016 Olympics, he said after his final event at the London Olympics. “I’m superexcited for that. I should be at my peak then.”

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